Hague on Afghanistan

I promised in an earlier post to pass on a few remarks by the new British Foreign Secretary, William Hague, about his coalition government’s outlook on Afghanistan. He made the comments during a recent visit to Washington. In my recent article in the magazine about the political track in the war, and the prospects for negotiations with the Taliban (subscription required), I report that officials in the previous British government, including David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, had urged the Obama Administration to open up a direct line of communication with Taliban leaders. In general, the British government under Labor had been more forward-leaning than the Obama Administration on negotiations with the Taliban in particular and on the need to improve political strategies toward Afghanistan (as opposed to military, development, and governance strategies) more generally.

Even before the British results were in, there was reason to believe that a Conservative-led government would continue down this policy path and perhaps even accelerate. Rory Stewart, a former diplomat who authored “The Places In Between,” about his walking journey across Afghanistan, and who had been one of the most forceful critics of the decision by President Obama to dispatch more American troops to the country, stood for election as a Conservative in a safe district, known as Penrith and The Border. He was elected with fifty-three per cent of the vote. Other foreign-policy advisers to the new prime minister, David Cameron, are said to share Stewart’s skepticism about the American military’s emphasis on counterinsurgency doctrine as a means to turn momentum in the Afghan war.

During his visit to Washington, Hague spoke cautiously about Afghanistan and emphasized his government’s desire to forge unity with the United States. He said the new government saw no need to “rush into a disagreement” with the U.S. about the subject of talking to the Taliban. Acknowledging that American commanders prefer to postpone serious consideration of such talks until after they have carried out their military push into Kandahar during the next six months, he added, “You can easily see that people would have different views about timing.” Nonetheless, he made clear that “it will be a big part of our job to support the peace process” and that the British push for more politics in Afghanistan, and less fighting, would persist.

Later in the discussion, Hague was asked to define success in the Afghan war. He replied, “To arrive at a point where Afghans can look after their own affairs without presenting a danger to the rest of the world.”

Steve Coll, a staff writer, is the dean of the Graduate School of Journalism at Columbia University, and reports on issues of intelligence and national security in the United States and abroad. He is the author of “Private Empire: ExxonMobil and American Power.”